bronchiolitis...

I know there haven't been many posts lately. That is because we made it through our first cold and it was intense. Here is the recap.

Monday: We noticed Sam had a pretty nasty cold. He had a bad cough and was stuffed up. We weren't too concerned but called the doctor because he was supposed to have his 4 month shots on Friday. Because of the shots the doctor had us come in. Just what we thought, a cold. He screamed himself to sleep which was unusual, but we weren't too worried because he was a little sick.

Tuesday: I noticed Sam was really congested and was purring like a cat/snorting like a pig. It just wasn't normal. So me, being the recently graduated nurse, took out my stethoscope and his lungs sounded like crap (yes, that is the technical term). I called the nurse at the Doctor's office and she said he would be fine. Just put saline drops in his nose and keep him elevated. I wasn't convinced, but I know I am paranoid so I took her advice. Later that night, the congestion and wheezing got worse and Sam was again screaming. It was too late to take him to the doctor and I didn't think it was quite bad enough for the ER AND none of the urgent care facilities were open anymore so we called the on-call nurse...again. She said to put him in the bathroom and fill it with steam, put saline drops in his nose, give him a warm bath, let him drink some warm liquids and that if he was wheezing he should be seen the next day. We tried most of that and he finally fell asleep.

Wednesday: We brought him to the doctor early because I was super paranoid. Everything you learn in nursing school emphasizes how important breathing is. The doctor heard the wheezing (I wasn't crazy) and decided to give him albuterol via a nebulizer. He screamed the whole time we were at the doctor and I was wondering where oh where did my happy baby go? The treatment did not make all the wheezing go away so we got our very own nebulizer (yay! more crap) to take home so we could do treatments every 4 hours.

Thursday: They wanted to check him again. He was still wheezing so they said to continue the albuterol and come back on Monday.

Monday: The wheezing was barely there and Sam was already a much happier baby.
It was a tough week and Sam was kind enough to share his cold with Mom and Dad. I am very glad we made it through alive and that I have my happy baby back who does not scream himself to sleep every night. That and the breathing issues were the worst part. I must say, it's hard being a parent.